


SAKURA

by warningimboring



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst, BAMF Haruno Sakura, Gen, No Uchiha Massacre, Tags May Change
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:54:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27311485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/warningimboring/pseuds/warningimboring
Summary: Haruno Sakura had one rule for herself to survive the institute: Stay low and absolutely do not be noticed by Uchiha or Uzumaki.But when graduation puts her in the same team as both of them, she won't be able to hide anymore.And as terrifying as the future seems, it might be her past that chokes her.(wow golly I suck at summaries huh)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 56





	1. Chapter 1

"And in team 7, we have Uzumaki Naruto”, Sakura held her breath, wanting it to be over but not quite ready, not quite ready for the possibility of it, for the possibility of-

“Haruno Sakura”, suddenly she could not get air into her lungs fast enough, her hands started shaking and her heart was too loud. She was thankful for the sudden noise the rest of her classmates produced, Ino's loud voice distinct through it all.

“Hey! Settle down will ya?”, the teacher yelled. He waited as the class silenced itself, anticipating who the third person would be, each hoping that it wouldn’t be them.

Sakura focused on getting air in and out of her, hoping that everyone was too busy worrying about themselves to pay attention to her. Now wasn’t the time to freak out. She must not show any weakness. Not here.

"Like I was saying,” grit out the teacher, “team 7 will be Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Uchiha Sasuke.”

If there was an uproar when she was paired with Uzumaki, it was nothing compared to the chaos that enveloped the class now. It was equal parts bewildered at the audacity of the pairing and relieved that they had nothing to do with it. Sakura felt her ears pop. There was too much air in her lungs and she went absolutely still. She noted that Uzumaki was laughing manically and Uchiha had angrily stormed off, with the teacher yelling at the rest of the class to settle down. Slowly, she stood up, and made her way down the class to the door. Her classmates went quiet seeing her, pitying her while at the same time too giddily relieved at their own fortune to give her any comfort. In the silence, Uzumaki's laugh was painfully loud. Her head thrummed as she moved, hyper focused on not catching Uzumaki’s attention. She had been at the institute long enough to know that this particular type of laughing spell was the kind that ended in blood. Sakura thought she could hear Ino through the pounding in her head, but she did not stop for her. The teacher didn’t meet her eyes as she passed him by. When she got to the door, she heard him say

“It starts tomorrow.”

From tomorrow she would be with Uzumaki and Uchiha.

From tomorrow she was Team 7.


	2. Chapter 2

_“Haruki, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, this is the only way.”_

Sakura woke with a distinct sense of having forgotten something-that and another skull splitting headache. A jarring belief that she was somewhere she did not belong enveloped her, suffocating in its intensity till she couldn’t stay still. But even opening her eyes felt like someone was stabbing into them so with a groan she squeezed her eyes shut and dug the heels of her hands into them. She waited for the pain to get bearable and slowly got up.

Sakura thought it fitting that she got one of her headaches today, that if her life was potentially going to be cracked down the middle, then her head might as well start the whole process off.

In a way though, she was relieved that morning was finally here. She was sick of the anticipation that had been choking her since she left the institute. If nothing else, she looked forward to the constant anxious thrumming in her chest to go away-even if she had a feeling that it would take her with it. She got dressed and made her way down.

The kitchen looked almost mockingly normal to Sakura. She thought that, given the circumstances, it could have looked a bit more malicious. But it was still the same homely kitchen from her childhood, and her mother was at the stove stir frying what seemed like breakfast as her father hovered nearby talking her ear off while trying to sneak in bites. The scene was so familiar Sakura felt sick. Would this all change? Would this be her last chance at normalcy? Would she never-

She took a rattling breath and held it long enough that her vision started swimming. She could not be weak. Not anymore.

She hadn’t told her parents about team 7. The previous day was a blur from the moment she had walked out of class. She had wandered around town aimlessly- trying to gather herself and had finally stumbled on home when she realised there wasn’t enough of her left to collect to become whole again. She was exhausted enough by everything that she fell asleep as soon as she lay down.

Now she stood in the stairs and watched the way her father’s eyes, the same green as hers, twinkled with a kindness hers never held. She watched her mother slap away her father’s sneaking hands. She stared, waiting for some kind of love for them. When she felt none, she quietly made her way out, her parents none the wiser.

Sneaking out from under people’s noses was a skill she had perfected in her stay at the institute.

Outside, she froze.

Standing with her arms crossed was Ino, leaning against her car. They looked at each other, each sizing the other up. Sakura felt her heart stutter in fear at Ino's silence. She knew that when the loudmouthed blonde was silent, she was deadly. Briefly she panicked- Ino had a silence that could see right through a person’s mind. But she stared back, face blank of the thunder in her chest. It always made Ino think she was hiding something damning when she did that, but it was the only defence Sakura had against Ino’s mind. Better to trick her with a bigger lie than be caught in the truth.

Yesterday, in between what felt like heaving her lungs into the bushes over her fear about the morning, she had worried about how she had left the institute, not even responding to Ino’s calls. She knew there would be consequences. She watched Ino warily as she decided on Sakura's fate.

After a beat, Ino straightened and headed to the driver’s side.

“Come on, I’ll drop you there.” she said over her shoulder, breaking the silence.

Wordlessly, Sakura followed her into the car.

Yamanaka Ino was not Sakura’s friend. When Sakura moved to Konoha at age twelve, many things about the village had scared her. But very little terrified her as much as the main families.

Like other assassination villages, Konoha's main income was from its services in assassination and other hired jobs. Civilian families ran the village for the assassins, engaged in agriculture, trade, hospitality, and food. Sometimes, like with Sakura, they also provided a fresh candidate for the institute.

As the core providers of the best assassins, the main families were what nightmares were made of. Each of them were proficient in skillsets that made them invaluable members of Konoha. They were ruthless in their secrecy, keeping how they trained themselves in these skills heavily guarded. Sakura had heard that some of the main families started training their members from birth.

The Yamanaka, Ino's family, were among the most important main families. With the Nara and the Akimichi, they formed the premier interrogative sect in Konoha. Their information gathering ability was almost unrivalled among the assassination villages.

Main family members rarely ever interacted beyond their tightly-knit circles, but Sakura knew that young main family members in the institute were made to form their own sects. When Sakura had entered the institute four years ago at age twelve, she had been recruited by Yamanaka Ino.

Ino was the best among the female students in her year. She had connections with just about all the girls, not to mention her connections with Akimichi and Nara. When Sakura was asked to follow Ino, she knew that there was very little choice- she also saw the protection that the Yamanaka name would offer. So she had accepted.

She knew Ino had been teamed up with Nara and Akimichi. Though she didn’t know much about them, the fact that they- willingly- hung around Uzumaki was enough of a red flag for Sakura. Ino would manage just fine with them though, Sakura suspected that the three had been trained together from the cradle.

They were almost at the institute. Ino still hadn’t said a word. Sakura knew that the longer Ino’s silence, the worse it got. But the terror in her heart was for her new team. She wanted to scream at Ino.

Was it not enough of a punishment that she was in a team with both- _both_ \- of the monsters? What could Ino do that was worse than that?

The car stopped. They had reached the institute.

Sakura felt her breath falter, but she held still, waiting for Ino's verdict.

Staring straight ahead, Ino said,

“Get out. Have fun with your new team.”

Sakura scrambled out and watched the car drive away. She watched until it was out of sight. And though she had promised herself she would not show her weakness anymore, her knees gave way and she sunk.

Years of following Ino had given her a keen understanding of what the Yamanaka said, and what she meant.

Haruno Sakura no longer had the Yamanaka name to fall back on. She hadn’t realized until now just how much she relied on it for her protection. Not until she was kicked out. Vaguely, she thought that it was impressive that Ino had managed to do make what Sakura had thought the worst scenario worse. She dug her fingers into her mouth to force down the hysterical laugh that was building up.

She was going to be in the same team as Uzumaki and Uchiha, and she was entirely alone.


End file.
